Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) is holding a series of consultation sessions over the spring of 2002 on the development of a Canadian Resource Recovery Strategy (CRRS). Sessions are being held in seven locations including Vancouver, Yellowknife, Edmonton, Toronto, Halifax, Montreal and Iqaluit. Representatives from industry, non-governmental organisations and all levels of government are being invited to participate. The objectives of these sessions are to identify:
In Yellowknife, the day-long consultation session began with an introduction by each participant, followed by an overview from Mike Clapham, NRCan, of the Canadian Resource Recovery Strategy (see Background Paper, Attachment I). The group then discussed resource recovery issues, priorities, roles of different stakeholders in the development and demonstration of projects, barriers to resource recovery, following which they identified potential resource recovery projects for co-funding by NRCan.
A copy of the agenda and the list of participants in Yellowknife are attached (Attachments II and III). There were sixteen participants representing resource recyclers, the City of Yellowknife, Diavik Diamonds, the government of the Northwest Territories, local entrepreneurs, a landfill operator, a gold mine undergoing environmental rehabilitation (Miramar Giant Mines), and concerned citizens including one Inuit Elder. Participants included two representatives from Yukon and two from Inuvik.
Participants identified the resource recovery issues listed in Table 3-1.
| Issue | Industrial | Institutional/ Commercial |
Post-consumer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metal tanks from Giant Mine | Y | ||
| Scrap metal from Giant Mine | Y | ||
| Waste packaging - Industrial / Commercial / Institutional (ICI) (cardboard) | Y | Y | |
| Metal from out of service large metal tanks in remote communities |
Y | ||
| Waste oil from vehicles | Y | ||
| Food scraps, other organics | Y | Y | |
| Paper (80% of material in Yellowknife and Inuvik landfills is paper) |
Y | Y | Y |
| Hazardous materials | Y | Y | Y |
| Propane tanks that require valve replacement every 10 years | Y | ||
| Wooden pallets | Y | Y | |
| Wood waste (poles) | Y | Y | |
| Tires | Y | Y | Y |
| Municipal organic matter | Y | Y | |
| Yard wastes | Y | ||
| Nonspec industrial waste oil | Y | ||
| Domestic glass | Y | ||
| Domestic plastic | Y | ||
| Beverage containers | Y | ||
| Building materials | Y | Y | Y |
| Electronic scrap | Y | Y | Y |
| Other hazardous waste | Y | ||
| Batteries | Y | ||
| Fluorescent light bulbs | Y | Y | Y |
| Waste heat | Y | ||
| Sewage | Y | ||
| Used goods - e.g. microwaves, TV’s, furniture | Y | ||
| Solvents | Y | ||
| Paints in NT (paints are separated in the Yukon) | Y | Y | |
| Arsenic trioxide (250,000 tonnes) buried in closed gold mines | Y | ||
| Automobile waste products | Y |
The session participants identified the following priorities:
Summary of Priorities
Summary of Key Barriers
The following roles for governments and industry to play in enhancing resource recovery were identified:
| Role | Federal | Provincial | Territorial | Municipal | Industry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Increase awareness | Y | ||||
| Lead by example | Y | ||||
| National inventory of available used resources (e.g. database accessible through 1-800 or E-bay) | Y | ||||
| Funding for resource recovery | Y | ||||
| Incentives for recycled product content | Y | ||||
| Facilitate use of recycled content by coordinating permission/approvals from CMHC/other agencies | Y | ||||
| Provide tax breaks for renovation (property, income) | Y | Y | Y | Y | |
| Design for recovery recycling, e.g. housing/computers | Y | ||||
| Implement true cost accounting of landfill | Y | ||||
| Limit quantities of waste (charge after limit exceeded) | Y | ||||
| Make it convenient to recycle | Y | ||||
| Offer financial incentives for recycling | |||||
| Ticket litterers | Y | ||||
| Recover methane from landfill | Y | ||||
| Practice product stewardship | Y | ||||
| Be open to innovative ideas for resource | Y | ||||
| recovery | |||||
| Print reports, manual on demand only | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Charge extra for manuals of products | Y | ||||
| Accept responsibility for packaging/provide baler at store | Y | ||||
| Arrange for cardboard to be backhauled | Y | ||||
| Ban commercial cardboard from landfill | Y | ||||
| Implement deposit/takeback - put responsibility back to producer | Y | Y | |||
| Provide incentives for backhaul | Y | ||||
| Coordinate/Harmonize resource recovery through Canadian Council of the Ministers of the Environment (CCME) | Y | Y | Y |
Group discussion revealed the following opportunities for improving resource recovery in the region:
Participants identified a variety of possible resource recovery projects in the region. These are presented in Table 8-1 below under the headings of post-consumer, institutional and industrial projects; projects that could potentially address more than one category are grouped together as “cross-cutting” projects. Some projects were more fully developed. All project ideas have been reported below. Where details were available, they have been included.
Project submissions received after the April 22 consultation are listed in Table 8-2.
| Project | Sponsor | Impact | Cost | Potential Partners |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CROSS-CUTTING | ||||
| Build an Arts Centre for Northwest Territories (NT) using reclaimed large holding tanks. These tanks are no longer required because long-term storage of fuel in tanks is no longer necessary. (Project proposed in letter to city councillors submitted). | Francois Thibeau, supported by Aurora Arts Society |
|
? | City of Yellowknife, Government of Northwest Territories (GNWT). Cleanup costs of the tanks are the responsibility of the Department of Indian and Northern Development (DIAND). |
| Save former Hudson’s Bay warehouse building from demolition, turn it into a community activity centre that incorporates a glass foundry, a musicschool, an Arts Centre, etc. Heat from foundry could be used to heat building. | Matthew Grogono, supported by other local citizens and artists |
|
$1.5 to 2 million | |
| Energy offset between community and minesite - Diavik could pay for wind energy project in Yellowknife to offset greenhouse gas emissions from electricity production at minesite, greenhouse gas credits could be obtained. | Diavik Mines |
|
? | |
| Remote mines in NT could pay to upgrade landfill in Yellowknife and save costs of transport of wastes further south for environmental disposal. | Diavik Mines |
|
? | |
| Feasibility study of wind profiles could be applied to communities. | mines | ? | ||
| Save 2 mine headframes, turn into geological museum for NT |
|
? | DIAND, the City of Yellowknife, and the NT Department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development (RWED). | |
| Recover cardboard, paper, and packaging; convert into pellets for use as fuel | ? | Suppliers, City of Yellowknife | ||
| POST-CONSUMER | ||||
| Youths from local Christian Fellowship Society could collect beverage cans from local office buildings and sell them to a local beverage collection centre and/or Alberta. Money could pay for a Christian Centre. | Diavik / Francois Thibeau |
|
? | |
| INSTITUTIONAL | ||||
| Challenged people could refurbish pallets and avoid/reduce need for Yellowknife to buy new pallets (e.g. similar project in Hawkesbury). Pallets could also be used as fuels. | • Extends landfill life | |||
| Recover waste heat from diesel GS at Jackfish Lake to run a greenhouse, or for aquaculture, or to heat a compost facility. |
|
|||
| Study sustainability of not-for-profits | ||||
| Study tax deductions for volunteer organization to address sustainability | ||||
| Reuse old buildings, establish a greenhouse that would provide local produce |
|
|||
| Restore 50 year old arena to multiuse skating in winter, and community centre in summer |
|
$1.5 million (approx.) | ||
| Reuse equipment from old Canadian Tire Building -into Arts Centre Building, sprinklers, heating system |
|
Canadian Heritage Foundation, Governments of NT and Yukon, DIAND, private foundations, Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) | ||
| Revitalize Festival of Midnight Sun | ||||
| INDUSTRIAL | ||||
| Establish local businesses to make communities more self-sufficient, reduce transportation costs of products, e.g. bakeries |
|
|||
| Recover and use heat from 80° F water that is 1000 feet deep | DIAND, Arctic Energy Alliance | |||
| Recycle of Scrap Metal located at Giant Mine. Unless a suitable alternative is found, thousands of tons of scrap metal currently located at the Giant Mine site will have to be hauled, at cost, to a landfill. The proposal is to make use of back-haul opportunities offered by trucks returning empty from Yellowknife to the south, and ship the scrap south for recycling. It is proposed that money that would otherwise have been used to collect and haul this scrap material to the landfill be allocated for this project. (Details provided above have been abstracted from a project sheet received after the April 22 consultation.) | Miramar Giant Mine Ltd. |
|
$400,000 (over a period of two to four years) | DIAND, Government of Northwest Territories (GNWT), City of Yellowknife, and local trucking firms. |
| Project | Sponsor | Impact | Cost | Potential Partners |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| POST-CONSUMER | ||||
| Tire recovery / removal / reuse. The objective of the study is to implement alternatives to land filling used tires, including feasibility assessment of re-use strategies. Options include: (a) the collection, sorting and shipping to south and (b) create re-use projects. | AB Salvage |
|
$33,000 (two collections/year: $18,000; assess feasibility of re-usestrategies: $15,000) Funding in place at present: $13,000 |
Town of Inuvik (Municipal Green Funds), Inuvik Recycling Society and a Tire producer |
| Used Batteries Recovery/Removal. To collect, sort and ship south, used batteries to prevent land filling and potential fire hazards with toxic emissions. | AB Salvage | • Network with organizations that recycle battery products. | $18,000 a year (twice yearly collections and shipments) Funding in place at present: $9,000 |
Town of Inuvik and Inuvik Recycling Society. |
| Recovery/Reuse and Removal of used waste paints -- latex and non-latex (oilbased) paints | AB Salvage |
|
$18,000 a year (twice yearly collections and shipments) Funding in place at present: $9,000 | Town of Inuvik and Inuvik Recycling Society. |
| Used Vehicle Recovery/Removal. To collect, sort and ship south, used vehicles to prevent land filling and potential fire hazards with toxic emissions | AB Salvage |
|
$57,000 a year (one annual collection / compaction and shipment). Funding in place at present: $26,000 |
Town of Inuvik (Municipal Green Funds), Inuvik Recycling Society |
| Cardboard/paper recovery/burner conversion. To collect, sort, reuse and convert cardboard products and paper products to prevent land filling and produce heat energy. | AB Salvage |
|
$300,000 for year one. Funding in place at present: $150,000 |
Town of Inuvik, NT Department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development (RWED), Environment Canada, Inuvik Recycling Society, and Local Businesses. |
| Project Coordinator - Resource Recovery Strategist. The role of the Northern representative for the NRCan initiative would be to initiate, organize, seek funding, offer community education, investigate feasibility plans and oversee all daily operations of resource recovery strategies, to deal with preventing and diverting items from the community landfill that would otherwise be potential fire hazards, leachable or give off toxic emissions. Will oversee all projects related to cardboard, batteries, tires, used vehicles, paints, paper, used oil, bottle deposit system, and backhauling activities. | AB Salvage |
|
$120,000 a year. Estimated funding in place at the moment: $60,000 | Town of Inuvik, Municipal Green Funds, Environment Canada (Eco-Action and the Canadian Rural Partnerships Program), RWED and the Inuvik Recycling Society. |
Resource recovery seeks to recover materials and energy at the end of product life in an economic, social and environmentally sustainable manner. Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) wishes to identify potential demonstration resource recovery projects that are reflective of Canada’s unique circumstances. These projects will form the basis of a Canadian Resource Recovery Strategy.
NRCan is undertaking a consultative process with all interested partners to solicit their views and ideas in a series of discussion fora to identify resource recovery priorities and recommend economic and environmentally sustainable demonstration projects for co-funding. Your input to this process is being sought.
NRCan is targeting to identify projects, funding partners and levels that can be incorporated in a resource recovery strategy that reflects the needs of all regions across Canada. From these consultations a business case will be developed and presented to federal senior management in the fall of 2002.
Consultations are planned during April and May in the following locations:
The objectives of the consultations are to identify:
Participants are requested to come to the meeting with one or more of the following:
A draft format for identifying potential demonstration projects is attached for your consideration (see Appendix I). One form for each potential demonstration project should be completed and taken to the consultation meeting.
The priorities, barriers and demonstration projects identified over the course of the consultations will be compiled in notes that will be transmitted to all participants. NRCan will use the results of the consultations to recommend demonstration projects for co-funding by the federal government.
Domestic and global demand for recycling and recycled products has been steadily increasing, and will continue. Both industrialized and non-industrialized economies are being challenged to be efficient and competitive, and to ensure the environmentally sound management of products and materials throughout their life cycle.
The recycling of products is becoming a highly competitive growth industry. Recycling is recognized as being resource efficient and is one of the means of achieving industrial and commercial stewardship together with associated reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Domestic and international pressure for the adoption of prevention-oriented measures that maximize the material and energy efficiency of products in their design and manufacture is growing. This pressure is creating opportunities for cost-effective and environmentally sound recycling and reuse of products at the end of their planned economic life.
Canada has been blessed with geography and geology rich in naturally occurring resources. Due to the multi-elemental complexity of many ore bodies, the challenges presented in harvesting multiple species of forest resources and oil exploration and extraction, Canada has unique and highly specialized competencies in natural resource management and production expertise. This specialized resource management knowledge base combined with existing infrastructure of modern processes and production facilities, provide a significant advantage in managing complex recyclable resource materials arising from both post industrial and post consumer sectors.
Small and Medium-size Enterprises (SME’s) have their own special opportunities, needs and challenges. For them, a typical challenge is to secure access to small-scale technologies and processes for resource recovery that are affordable and cost-effective, and that do not necessarily rely on direct or regular access to more sophisticated centralized recovery facilities. SME’s remain the backbone of Canada’s economy, responsible for a high proportion of employment, growth.
In absolute terms resource recovery operations are most attractive in urbanized regions, but in relative terms can occasionally be of greater significance in sensitive rural and remote areas. The North would be a particularly significant case in point, as would be valuable farming and tourism areas and regions with delicate ecosystems and valued natural amenities. In communities and regions where haulage of recyclable materials to centralize recovery operations is too costly or impractical, local small-scale recovery enterprises may present an attractive alternative and opportunity.
Canada has an opportunity to establish itself as a global leader in niche areas of resource recovery, with a positive image as a responsible life-cycle manager of products. There is a need to develop and promote Canadian technologies and approaches that can compete in the growing global market for viable and environmentally responsible resource recovery technologies and expertise. In order for this to happen Canada has to remain an active and credible participant in international policy developments affecting both global markets for recyclable materials and the access to foreign markets of Canadian products.
NRCan is facilitating the development of a Canadian resource recovery strategy. Canada needs a strategy for the following reasons:
Resource recovery consists of measures to maximize the economic opportunities and success in -recovering products (and by-products), materials and energy at the end of product life, and putting them back to work in the economy through recycling and reuse.
A resource recovery strategy focuses on the promotion and support of innovative product design and supportive public, private and consumer policies and practices that a.) increase the recoverability of valuable material and energy resources at the end of product life; b.) improve access to recoverable products, materials and energy (including product components and by-products) by those involved in the recycling and reuse sectors; and c.) enhance the efficiency and environmental soundness of recycling and reuse. Cost-effective and environmentally sound resource recovery optimizes the productive use of natural resources, minimizes waste generation and related treatment and disposal costs and supports industrial innovation and competitiveness.
Effective resource recovery efforts involve complex policy, technology, regulatory, and infrastructure issues that transcend traditional industrial, commercial, institutional and consumer sector and inter-jurisdictional boundaries. Strong partnerships with provinces/territories, communities, industry, consumers and public stakeholder groups are vital to successful approaches. The establishment of a consultation process identifying projects that will have an impact on the recovery of materials currently going to waste is an essential start.
Three key elements need to be addressed when developing a cost-effective, environmentally sound resource recovery strategy than can advance Canada’s sustainable development goals:
Demonstration projects are to be identified that:
The projects should:
Following the stakeholder consultation sessions and any written comments submitted by May 31, 2002, a summary of the comments received will be compiled and circulated to interested stakeholders. Taking these comments into account, an overall strategy will be developed. The recommended demonstration projects and funding levels and partners will form the basis of the strategy. It is anticipated that the strategy will be submitted for funding approval in the fall of 2002.
Stakeholder views on these proposals are an important element of the Canadian resource recovery strategy process. Your views are greatly appreciated.
Draft Format to Identify Potential Projects
| 8:00 AM | Registration & Refreshments | |
| 8:30 AM | Welcome / Workshop Objectives | Roger Yates |
| 8:40 AM | Round Table Introductions | All |
| 9:00 AM | Overview on CRRS Strategy | Mike Clapham |
| 9:20 AM | Round Table Discussions on Priorities and Issues:
|
Chair: Carole Burnham |
| 10:30 AM | Break | |
| 10:45 AM | Introduction of Issues to be addressed by breakout Groups |
Chair: Carole Burnham |
| 11:00 AM | Breakout Group Discussions | All |
| 12:00 PM | Networking buffet lunch | |
| 12:45 PM | Breakout Groups Continue Discussions | All |
| 2:00 PM | Groups Report to Plenary / Group | |
| 2:30 PM | Break | |
| 2:45 PM | Round Table Closing Comments/Issues | All |
| 3:30 PM | Next Steps | Mike Clapham |
| 3:45 PM | Summary / Thank You’s | Roger Yates |
| 4:00 PM | Adjourn | |
| Company | Name | Contact Number | E-mail Address |
|---|---|---|---|
| City of Yellowknife | H. Julian Huang | (867) 920-5697 | jhuang@city.yellowknife.nt.ca |
| City of Yellowknife | Mayor Gordon Van Tighem | (867) 920-5693 | gvantighem@city.yellowknife.nt.ca |
| City of Yellowknife | Bruce Underhay | (867) 669-3404 | bailfac@city.yellowknife.nt.ca |
| Diavik Diamonds | Brenda Kuzyk | (867) 609-6508 | brenda.kuzyk@diavik.com |
| Federation of Canadian Municipalities | Sherri Watson | (613) 792-1357 | smwatson@magma.ca |
| Government of Northwest Territories | Emery Paquin | (867) 873-7654 | emery_paquin@gov.nt.ca |
| GroundTrax (Yukon) Inc. Environmental Systems | Sue Greetham | 867-660-4629 | greetham@marshlake.polarcom.com |
| Hatch | Carole Burnham | (416) 445-0500 | cburnham@attcanada.ca |
| Hatch | Roger Yates | (905) 403-4131 | ryates@hatch.ca |
| Inuvik, Inuit Elder | Albert Bernhardt | (867) 777-1341 | No e-mail (via Barbara Armstrong) |
| Inuvik Recycling Society (and AB Salvage) | Barbara Armstrong | (867) 777-2072 | recycle@permafrost.com |
| Miramar Giant Mine Ltd. | Ron Connell | (867) 669-3725 | ron_Connell@nt.sympatico.ca |
| NRCan | Mike Clapham | (613) 992-4404 | mclapham@nrcan.gc.ca |
| Originals by T-BO | Francois Thibeau | (867) 873-5672 | No e-mail (via Matthew Grogono) |
| Prospector, Dump Stacker | Walter Humphries | (867) 873-5432 | baldwin@internorth.com |
| Raven Recycling Society, Whitehorse, Yukon |
Padraig Holohou | (867) 667-7269 | operations@ravenrecycling.org |
| Recycling Council of Alberta |
Christina Seidel | (403) 843-6563 | cseidel@telusplanet.net |
| Terra Verra Co. | Gary Vaillancourt | (867) 766-2507 | No e-mail (via Matthew Grogono) |
| Yellowknife Glass Recycling |
Matthew Grogono | (867) 669-7654 | grogono@internorth.com |
| Company | Name | Contact Number | E-mail Address |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artist Run Community Centre (Aurora Arts Society) | Arlene Yaceyko | ayaceyko@excite.com | |
| City of Yellowknife | Katherine Silcock | 867-920-5689 | ksilcock@city.yellowknife.nt.ca |